Foundering
Examining the Five Days That Transformed OpenAI
The firing and rehiring of Sam Altman only intensified his grip on the company.
Sam Altman
Photographer: SeongJoon Cho/BloombergThis article is for subscribers only.
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Last fall, as Sam Altman was at the peak of his success and touring the world to espouse the virtues of artificial intelligence, board members of OpenAI were secretly turning on him. They’d lost trust in Altman and said he’d lied to them in ways that made it hard for them to ensure that OpenAI’s work was benefiting all of humanity. In November, the board fired Altman.